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small

small

7 1.0
Written in lowercase rather than uppercase
  • adjective
  • /smɔl/
  • Specialized
: minúsculo
  • I struggled to decipher the small writing on the label of the medicine bottle.
  • small letters
  • small print
  • small font

Which, by the way, is exactly what I think, and that's capital BLM, small letters BLM.

Examples

  • She prefers using small letters when she writes in her diary.

  • Look at the small print.

  • You can see he took some notes here and look how small the writing is.

  • Sorry, the print is so small on these things.

  • The print is too small without my glasses.

  • It's all in the small print, dearie.

  • When I tried to read on my phone, the font was too small and I couldn't adjust it.

    Academic text (2012)
  • Joop Heman had printed his name in yellow paint, in small letters at the lower-right-hand corner.

    Fiction book (1998)
  • The instructions were printed in small font, making them difficult to read.

Synonyms

lowercase
vssmall
16 1.8

Written using small letters, not capital letters

is a more literary or less technical way to refer to that letter form
minuscule
vssmall
1 5.1

Written in small letters rather than capital letters

is the more usual everyday word rather than a technical term

Antonyms

43 1.0

Written as a large letter at the start of names or sentences

5 1.1

Words that use capital letters rather than small letters

Idioms

small wonder
  • Informal
6 4.4

Not surprising because the facts make it clear

A difficult and impressive achievement

4 7.7

Worry too much about small, unimportant things

A small action that leads to a very large benefit for all people

2 5.5

An important person in a small group who has more power than elsewhere

1 9.3

People print words very small in documents to hide important details

You do a little at a time instead of trying everything at once

Compounds

407 1.5

A community with few people and few shops

small talk
  • Informal
83 2.1

Polite short talk about simple topics like the weather

56 2.7

Used for projects or models that are not large

small arm
  • Specialized
26 4.9

A gun like a handgun or rifle that a person can carry

21 1.0

A boat that is small and used for short trips on lakes or rivers

17 3.3

A large amount of money that is more than you expect

16 1.0

A small extra payment you give to use a service

15 2.0

A person who owns or works on a small farm to grow food

small intestine
  • Specialized
13 3.4

A long narrow tube between the stomach and large bowel that digests food and takes in nutrients

12 2.8

A person who owns or runs a small company with fewer than 100 employees

9 2.3

A small amount of money in coins that is not worth much

Part of the United States government that helps small businesses with loans and advice

small fry
  • Offensive
7 6.9

People or groups seen as unimportant compared to others

6 3.8

Important details in an agreement or document printed in very small type

small cap
  • Specialized
6 6.3

A company on the stock market with a small market value

5 4.9

A very early time in the morning soon after midnight

3 1.8

A person who is shorter than most people and has a light build

3 4.4

Wild animals like rabbits and pheasants that people hunt for food or sport

small-cap
  • Specialized
2 7.0

A company or stock with a small market value, often under one billion dollars

2 1.9

A letter that is not a capital letter

A small problem when people do not understand each other

A warm, friendly feeling in a small town where people know each other

small-capitalization
  • Specialized
1 7.9

Of companies worth less than one billion dollars

small beer
  • Archaic
1 7.9

Something unimportant and not worth much attention

1 5.8

With wings that are small for its body

1 8.8

A small irregular galaxy near the Milky Way that you can see from the Southern Hemisphere

small fry
  • Informal
1 7.4

Young children who are not yet adults

small cell carcinoma
  • Specialized
1 6.7

A very serious cancer made of small round cells that grows and spreads quickly in the lungs

small capital
  • Specialized
1 7.7

A letter that looks like a big letter but is the height of a small letter used for emphasis

Animals like chickens or rabbits that people keep for eggs, meat and money

1 6.3

An inner feeling that quietly tells you right from wrong

small cap
  • Specialized
1 6.9

A capital letter the same height as a small letter used for style

An activity of searching for and shooting small wild animals and birds for food or sport

1 5.1

Very small bits of dirty matter in the air that come from smoke and engines and can harm people's health

small man syndrome
  • Offensive
1 8.2

A man who acts overly aggressive to hide feeling weak or less important

A baby who is much smaller and lighter than usual for their pregnancy length

A company that gives small loans to people who cannot get bank loans

A common way to connect a computer to devices like printers or hard drives

A plant that produces small fruit

1 4.3

An animal with ears that are small for its head

1 4.4

A plant or crop with smaller parts inside its fruit than other kinds

small calorie
  • Specialized
6.3

Amount of heat that raises one gram of water by one degree Celsius at normal air pressure

5.8

A grass like reeds that grows in wet places like marshes, often in the southern United States

A low trailing plant of cold places that makes small red berries you can eat

A rude word for someone, often a man, who acts loud and angry to hide low confidence

A small animal like a cat that is active at night and lives in Southeast Asian forests

A tiny, not exact bit of something

8.1

A shop on a ship where sailors buy personal items taken from their pay

small stuff
  • Specialized
8.6

A thin rope on a ship used for small tasks like tying or securing

small slam
  • Jargon
9.2

A bridge result when players win all but one trick in a hand

small white aster
  • Specialized
8.7

A small plant that comes back each year with white daisy-like flowers

A large European tree with small dark green leaves often planted in parks

small-leaved linden
  • Specialized
8.1

A large European tree with small dark green leaves grown for its shade and beauty

A belief in small communities that favors tradition and close relationships

A quiet inner feeling that tells you when something is wrong

How Small

microscopic
57 4.8
micrographic
  • Specialized
8.1
tiny
∞ 1.0
small
  • Specialized
7 1.0
normal
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

small positive
smaller comparative
smallest superlative

Etymology

Small comes from an old German word smal meaning 'narrow' or 'thin'. A small letter means a lowercase or little letter, not a large capital, which keeps the idea of being less in size.